Guest Blog by Craig Lambert – 5 Reasons to Try Marriage Education

For young couples, the thrill of engagement and wedding preparations can overshadow an important fact: on the other side of the honeymoon, life as usual awaits. What will married life look like?

Marriage education not only prepares partners for the challenges and opportunities of married life, it enriches the pre-marital or newlywed stage. Partners deepen their relationship, making them even more excited to commit to each other for life.

Have you considered marriage education but need help convincing your fiancé or spouse? Thinking about gifting marriage education to your adult child and his or her partner?

Here are five great reasons engaged or newly married couples should give Marriage Education a try:

1. Defy the Odds—Build a Union that Lasts
Today’s divorce statistics are downright scary. Half of all marriages end in divorce. One in four ends within two years. But you don’t have to become one of them. A rigorous study by University of Denver researcher found that marriage education lowered the divorce rate by over 30%.

2. Ward Off the Specter of the Long, Passionless Marriage
Young couples see long-suffering husbands and wives all around them. How do relationships get that way? What went wrong? Couples feel empowered when they learn how these situations develop and what to do if they sense warning signs at home.

3. Fill Your Toolbox with Proven Communication Skills
We are not born with stellar communication skills and most people have never learned the skills that are shown to work best. Often, marital conflict stems from an inability to communicate effectively and navigate disagreements. Through marriage education, couples learn to hear their partner and respond appropriately, making conflict useful, rather than hazardous, to the relationship.

4. Beat the Post-Wedding Blues
Because a wedding often takes a year to plan, couples end up structuring their lives around the preparations. Their identities become “bride” and “groom.” But once the big event is over, many couples report a dip in mood. Research tells us that up to 10% suffer sadness intense enough to seek counseling. Marriage education prepares couples for these feelings, normalizing them so that they don’t cause panic.

5. Explore and Understand Your Partner on a Deeper Level
Most couples spend more time planning their wedding than their marriage. While brides- and grooms-to-be believe they know their partners thoroughly, some important topics inevitably go undiscussed. Through marriage education, partners can avoid disrupting the stability of their relationship by broaching these topics in a structured way:

Each person’s vision of the marriage as it blossoms over time

Family-of-origin issues that could impact the relationship

Gender role expectations each partner may not even realize s/he harbors

Financial values

Intimacy and sexual assumptions

With a little education, you can build a marriage of connection and commitment.

Craig Lambert is a San Diego marriage therapist helping couples strengthen their relationships and improve communication. A couples counselor for more than 30 years, Craig Lambert, LCSW, has helped hundreds of frustrated, hurting couples gain new understanding of themselves, their partners and even the world around them. Proven, gentle strategies like Mindfulness exercises and Imago Therapy let individuals recognize when they’re bringing issues from past relationships—and particularly their family of origin—into present relationships. Craig’s clients gain new insights, relief and peace when they understand the often unconscious underpinnings of relationship conflict. Find out how Craig can help you improve your relationship!

Contact Us

Sign Up For Our Newsletter

Use the form to sign up for our newsletter and learn more about relevant issues in family mediation.

Email address:

Leave this field empty if you're human:

The information located on this site are for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. Use of and access to this website or any of the e-mail links contained within this site do not create an attorney-client relationship between San Diego Family Mediation Center, LLC and the user. If you would like to discuss a particular issue privately, we welcome you to contact our office directly.